The Dallas Mavericks' showdown with the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday was more than just about Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The two teams boast some of the best rookies this 2023-24 in Dereck Lively II and Chet Holmgren, and many tuned into the game in excitement to see how the two would fare.
So far, Lively got one of the better highlights of the contest over Holmgren after the Mavs rook absolutely embarrassed the Thunder big man with a wild poster.
Late in the second quarter of the game, Lively saw a clear path to the basket after Luka Doncic handed him the ball at the top of the 3-point line. Holmgren, who was under the basket, was the only one on the way of Lively for the bucket, but the Mavs rising star didn't let it bother him at all.
The former Duke standout proceeded to deliver a nasty two-handed jam, with Holmgren trying to block it but to no avail.
Of course the whole Mavs bench was in awe of the dunk, while the whole American Airlines Center cheered in amazement of their very own rookie.
With the Mavs trailing by a huge margin at that point, that slam from Dereck Lively II over Chet Holmgren was definitely a confidence-booster for the team. Not to mention that it gave the fan base something to be happy about amid the slow start from the team.
Lively has really established himself as a significant contributor for Dallas, and it will be interesting to see how he grows alongside Doncic and the rest of the team.